A Loner's Care
by Flipper Boid Skua
Summary: A lost hatchling is saved from Redclaw by a strange, new dinosaur. Now they embark on a journey to find the child's herd, from the Great Valley to the Mysterious Beyond. Features deviantart's IsisMasshiro's LBT Therizinosaurus character. R&R plz!


Disclaimer: I don't own Land Before Time or any of its characters.

**Full Detail:** I've been meaning to do this for a while. IsisMasshiro from deviantart gave me permission to borrow her Therizinosaurus character for this story, as well as the freedom to be creative from his name to his history to his personality! I was so happy and excited when she did (hugz) and I give her absolute full credit of the Therizinosaurus character! Squee! *ahem* The other character, belongs to my best friend, known here as Whitestar the Undecided. She created everything about the said character (from her name to her history to her personality! ^^), and I hope I'm doing justice here. I hope that also for Isis' kickass dinosaur.

**Extra Note:** This is also based on a private e-mail RolePlay Whitestar and I did; the first few chapters will cover that so everyone can follow along.

Without further ado, let's get on with the story (Whitestar, prepare for a chapter of deja vu! XD )

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><p>Prologue<p>

_First Encounter_

"And then what, Mama?" an eager young Onehorn inquired, watching her mother with large eyes that were just filled with an undying lust for adventure. It was nightfall and her herd was sleeping. She wasn't tired though; the bedtime stories her female parent was telling her was much too exciting to miss, that fact defeating its purpose entirely. The mother sighed, but couldn't help but smile at her child's curiousity.

"Well, the little Longneck and his friends tried to push the big rock over, but it was too heavy! The Sharptooth wasn't about to budge from it and it snapped at them. They were safe of course, but they probably wouldn't be for long if their missing companion hadn't shown up. With a ram of her head, the Threehorn hatchling knocked the rock over, all by herself. The mean Sharptooth was no match for her strength and fell into the water below, never to be seen again."

"Wow..." was the only response before the story continued.

"They carried on with their journey, climbing up the highest mountain walls to find the most beautiful place in the world: the Great Valley." She paused for a moment, smiling at her offspring. "And you know what, Brook?"

"What?" Brook replied with a wag of her tail, her spirited gaze never faltering for a second.

"That's where we're headed next. We're to stay there for a couple of days, so we can take a break from walking so much."

"Thank goodness." Brook said, wriggling her toes. "Because my feet are getting really tired." This got a chuckle out of her mother.

"Your feet may be tired, but your brain certainly isn't." With that, the grownup stood up and nudged her hatchling to a small clump of vegetation that would serve as the child's temporary nest. "Get to sleep, little one. We'll be arriving to the Valley when the Bright Circle's high in the sky."

"Okay, Mama..." Finally feeling the day's long trek catching up to her, Brook gave a yawn that flowed through her entire body, shaking herself before curling up on her bed. But still, one question fluttered through her mind and she lifted her head. "Mama?"

"Hm?" her parent hummed, laying herself between her child and sleeping mate.

"Is the story true?" Again, this got a chuckle from her mother, who nuzzled her baby.

"It's just a bedtime story, sweetheart. But yes, it's true. Exaggerated, certainly. But nonetheless true. Now go to sleep."

"Kay..." Brook muttered, mind now satisfied and calm enough to gently ease itself to sleep...

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><p>"SHARPTEETH!" The alarm from the sentry spread throughout the herd like wildfire and despite their sleepy state, plenty of Onehorns jolted awake and quickly went into a state of panic as a couple of loud roars echoed through the air. A couple of Fanbacked Sharpteeth were visible, even at this time of night, and worse, they were charging straight for the herd.<p>

Brook was one of the many that was awake, as was her mother and father. In a matter of seconds, the rest of the herd pulled themselves free of their dreams when they heard and felt the rumble of the earth as hundreds of feet pounded around them. The young hatchling was used to minor ambushes by relatively harmless Fast Biters, but these were by far the largest sharpteeth she's met. By instinct, she stuck close to her parents, who in turn stood their ground protectively over the youngster, glaring at the sharpteeth.

The Fanbacks were scattering the herd, roaring loudly to further confuse the Leaf Eaters. And it seemed to be working: the entire herd was too panicked by the darkness and the threatening sounds that they weren't in the correct mindset to put up an efficient defense. In blind panic, it was every Leaf Eater for himself and those who did stand their ground were ushered and even rammed by their fellows. In fact, that was exactly what happened with Brook's parents. Huddled to the ground, wrapping her tail around herself, Brook opened her eyes a peek to find that the space her parent's once occupied was empty. Feeling yet more fear seizing her heart, the youngster looked about franctically, staying curled where she was despite the risks of being trampled by her own herd.

"Mama? Papa?" she muttered softly at first before taking a breath and yelling it with all her might. But it was drowned out by the sound of her herd's frantic screams and the ferocious roar of their attackers. She finally stood and sniffed, trying to focus on the smells around her as best she could with all the chaos. No use; her parents' scent was all tangled up in the scent of everyone else and...and...was that the smell of...blood?

With a whimper, she got her legs into gear and took off running in a random direction, trying to get the roaring behind her as her fear took her further from her herd, her predators...her parents...

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><p>She never wanted to get lost. She didn't want the Bright Circle to rise on her lonely form and remind her that she was all alone. She didn't want to remember her mistake... Fear had taken over her body and she just bolted in the same blind frenzy as everyone else. It didn't cross her mind that this happened to many hatchlings that found themselves seperated from their families; she didn't let it cross her mind because she knew that most, if not all, of those hatchlings never lived passed the next day. Sharpteeth, Sinking Sand, Gurgling Pits, all kinds of deathtraps waited around the corner for them.<p>

Keeping her tears back so her vision won't be impaired, Brook tried her best to keep calm, as she already learned the hard way that _not_ being calm was a bad thing last night. Wandering with little direction, she tried sniffing her way back, but her sniffer was filled with reminders of the night before: fear, desperation, the ever lingering smell of blood. It all caused her to shudder and made it harder for her to hold her tears back.

Had to stay focused. Priority number one was to stay alive in anyway she can. Her mother told her that they were crossing prime Sharpteeth territory yesterday and that fact no doubt held true now. She had to be very careful, keep every one of her senses about her, use every ounce of wit she had. And she best start now, because she was already spotted.

Another huge sharptooth made its appearance. This one wasn't the same kind of sharptooth she saw last night, and it had a long painful looking scar running down its body. She knew instantly who it was; her mother told her stories about it. Redclaw! Of all the sharpteeth she could meet, it had to be the meanest around here! Though by the looks of it, the sharptooth didn't have those Fast Biter friends with him, although that was little of a consolation now that he was charging for her, mouth agape. Having been frozen for a moment, Brook snapped out of whatever was holding her there and turned tail to run with a scream, instinctively calling out: "Mama! Daddy!"

She could hear the crashing of feet behind her and she knew Redclaw was giving chase, even before she glanced back to confirm it. This couldn't be happening, this couldn't be happening! It was just a dream, a horrible nightmare that'll disappear soon and she would wake up and see her mother and father beside her again... WHY CAN'T SHE WAKE UP ALREADY? The answer was horribly obvious: she wasn't sleeping; she was going to die very soon and at such a young age. But it seemed as though she was being given a chance. Just as she was feeling the hot breath at her tail as the massive sharptooth leaned down to scoop her up in his maw, she spotted a strange looking silhouette lingering by some trees.

No time to wonder at the stranger's identity; she'll just have to go on and leave her chances to fate. It was the best she had. Closing her eyes and willing her legs to go faster, she felt the hot breath behind her fade as she gained a precious amount of distance from her attacker. Feeling the coolness of the air indicating the presence of a shadow, she opened her eyes and saw a large black-colored foot in her range of vision. Quickly, she scrambled behind it, huddling tightly to it to feel the warmth of the creature, a warmth that hopefully meant safety.

Noticing the rumbles of the earth and now feeling something small huddling at its foot, the mysterious creature stopped its feeding and glanced down at the the little one before lifting its gaze to Redclaw, who was coming to a stop a safe distance away. Even Redclaw had to pause for thought, as the creatue was so strange looking, he didn't know what to truely make of it. It had a long neck, but was a two-footer; it stood just as large as himself and strangest of all, it sported three massive claws on both its hands. Never had he seen anything like it.

The creature certainly met many sharpteeth like Redclaw apparently, as it immediately turned to him with a glare, spreading its arms as if daring him to attack although it was clearly just displaying what was no doubt its main defensive weapons. Redclaw snorted, taking a sample of the air in an attempt to figure this creature out. But if anything, its scent just confused him all the more. It was like a mixture of Leaf Eater and Sharptooth. The closest scent it resembled was like a Fast Runner or an Egg Stealer, but even then it was much too different to be labeled the same. Getting nowhere with his own observations, the sharptooth growled.

_"Who are you and what're you doing in my territory?" _He couldn't tell if this thing was a competitor or prey; none of the mixed signals made any sense, NOTHING about this creature made any sense. And whether or not the creature even understood him remained vague as the thing only made a low threatening growl in response. After a few seconds of trying and failing to sort this out, Redclaw just assumed this was a sharptooth before him and as such, he accepted the challenge. Raising his head, he let out a fierce roar to call his Fast Biter companions.

Brook cringed at the loud roar and risked a peek. Redclaw was still there, of course, and...She looked up at her potential rescuer for the first time, both intrigued and incredibly frightened at the same time. Seeing how she wasn't dead yet, this thing was most likely on her side after all and it was confirmed when its massive tail shifted to nudge her towards the small pocket of trees behind them. Understanding the gesture, she gave a whimper and scurried into the trees, not going too far and choosing to stay hidden in a tangle of roots as best she could.

It wasn't very long when (surprise!) three Fast Biters arrived: one blue, the other green, and the third a black and white color. Brook recognized Screech and Thud from the stories her mother told her, but the third Fast Biter was as much of a mystery to her as her rescuer was. And it was obvious all three Fast Biters clearly had no idea what reason there was to summon them, for they skid to a stop and stared wide-eyed at her rescuer. She'd probably have the same reaction too if it wasn't for her current situation...

Redclaw glared at his companions, knowing confusion was taking hold of them as well. But now was not the time to be mentally disorientated and he barked out his order, having a plan to test this stranger and what it can do. _"What're you waiting for, idiots? Attack!"_ Better to put three Fast Biters at risk than himself, especially in an experiment like this. Their newest Fast Biter companion was frozen where she stood, whilst Screech and Thud glanced at each other with worried looks. They were more than a little intimidated attacking something this large and deadly looking. But they had little choice and they forced down their fear and took up position. They both moved at the same time, approaching their target from opposite directions, aiming for the throat as it seemed vulnerable enough. It'll be like attacking a Longneck... If a Longneck had large claws decorating its fingers...

Screech was the first to make the leap of faith, claws and teeth ready. But the creature had quicker reflexes than he gave it credit for and it stepped back enough to dodge the lethal blow and made a swipe with its own claws. It hit the mark perfectly and the blue Fast Biter was swatted away to crash into the ground a short distance, wincing heavily at the deep gashes along his side. Thud's eyes widened a bit in shock before glaring heavily at the creature that harmed his brother. Okay, now it's personal and blood shall spill as he circled the giant creature, making mock attacks as it was one of the best ways to lower an opponent's guard. It seemed to work as he made his move and lunged, jumping as high as he could and managing to latch on to the creature's neck.

But before he can make a single snap for the throat, the creature swung its head powerfully enough for the Fast Biter to lose his grip, and Thud felt a split second of helplessness as a swipe of the creature's oversized claws sent him painfully flying to crash beside his slowly-recovering sibling. Watching all this, Redclaw gave a heavy hiss at the apparent ease of it all as the strange creature turned its attention to the third and final standing Fast Biter.

Having watched her two companions fail, the new Fast Biter decided to employ a different strategy... by running off into the trees, disappearing into the shadows. At this unauthorized retreat, Redclaw snarled heavily. _"Get back here, you female coward!"_ He should've known she would be useless. But he was immediately proven wrong when Brook took a peek out her hiding place, before suddenly giving a scream as something grabbed onto her tail and dragged her out of her safe haven. Seconds later, the female Fast Biter reappeared from the trees. What she lacked in strength, she made up for with resourcefulness. She hasn't failed to notice the creature's protectiveness over this child and she had to take advantage of the opportunity.

Redclaw quickly understood the idea and smirked at the creature, who immediately snapped all attention to the female Fast Biter. The creature was growling even louder, its claws twitching in agitation, and...it spoke.

_"I suggest you let her go_._"_ The voice itself was soft-spoken, but very stern. Screech and Thud, now shakily getting to their feet, tilted their heads at the same time their new female companion did. Even Redclaw had to pause in confusion once more. It wasn't so much what the creature said, as such words were to be expected, but the very way it talked to them... It sounded exactly like a Leaf Eater speaking Sharptooth. Does everything about this creature have to be so stinkin' complicated?

But despite the 'suggestion' and despite the confusion, the she-Fast Biter never faltered her hold on the hatchling for a second. In fact, as if to mock the creature, she clamped her jaws on the little hatchling, causing Brook to scream in agony. The carnivore wasn't so much as suicidal as she was giving her companions an opportunity to attack. With the creature focused on her, now was their chance, and they were going to take it. They just needed to wait for the opportune moment...

And it didn't take long at all. The creature took a threatening step towards their new member, raising its claws to strike her down and recover the hatchling. Thud made the first move this time and leapt, latching onto the creature's side and sinking his teeth into its shoulder. His brother soon joined the attack, managing to jump up onto the creature's back, in turn trying to distract it from the main attack: Redclaw finally made his move and charged, barely ducking in time to avoid a defensive slash. He was focused on the most important thing and managed to clamp his murderous jaws onto the shrieking creature's neck. The Fast Biters jumped off quickly as their boss forced the struggling creature to the ground before Redclaw made his final warning, voice muffled: _"I don't know who or what kind of sharptooth you are, but you will pay dearly for trespassing our territory."_

But surprisingly, the creature had a different reaction from expected and it managed a smirk through its pain. Then it spoke again, but this time in Leaf Eater. "I'm not a sharptooth." With that, the creature retaliated in the only way it can in this position: giving Redclaw a powerful kick in the side, forcing the sharptooth to let go before the creature slashed three long wounds into the large carnivore. Standing as Red Claw stumbled in pain, it turned its attention back to the Fast Biters. Screech and Thud were stunned that this alien creature actually managed to cause their leader harm before they both began to back up under the creature's glare. They were smart sharpteeth and smart sharpteeth knew when they were in over their heads.

The creature never faltered its glare, its hostility almost exclusively on the female Fast Biter who was still holding Brook hostage. "Let the child go before I use force." That most likely meant that it'll shishkabob her with those claws if she didn't drop the hatchling. For a moment, she didn't know what to do. She was still in the process of trying to prove herself as a worthy packmate to her companions and letting go of Brook could mean her death. But not letting the child go could still get her killed at the hands of this new monster. With a growl, she made her decision and dropped the hatchling. Brook immediately scrambled up, ignoring her pain as she hurried back to the creature, curling up by its foot once more, trembling so heavily that one might think she's having her own personal earthshake.

Screech and Thud certainly wasn't angered by their comrade's decision. In fact, they made a smart decision of their own and dashed off just as hastily as the child did, the female Fast Biter pausing before following her fellows. Watching the trio retreat, the creature lowered its claws just a bit and turned its attention to Redclaw, who glared at it. But this thing wasn't a sharptooth after all, so it wasn't necessary to fight to the death as he had originally planned. Plus, he was injured already, no need to put himself in more of a risk. He wasn't _that_ hungry. Growling, he too turned and retreated after his Fast Biter partners.

The atmosphere relaxed immediately as the Longclaw dinosaur lowered his hands completely, shaking himself a bit to help rid some of the pain from the injuries he has acquired from this little confrontation. Largely unfazed by what remaining pain there was, he lowered his head to Brook and nudged her with his snout. In response, the girl stopped her cowering and looked up at him, eyes still full of fear. The creature took a small step back to better examine her, finding she wasn't too injured and should heal nicely on her own. And speaking of 'on her own'...

He stood back to full height, looking for any sign of Brook's own kind. Nothing, not even the recently retreated sharpteeth were in sight and he looked back down at her, his voice taking on a slightly kinder tone. "Where's your herd?"

"I...I don't know..." she stuttered, trying to get her voice to work correctly. "I got seperated from them 'cause of some big sharpteeth."

The only response to this was a soft grunt as the creature realized that he'll have to improvise. He hasn't been in this area long, but even he's been hearing talk of some place called the Great Valley. With it apparently being the resting point of many migrants, perhaps the little one's herd was there. And even if they weren't, it'd be a lot safer to keep Brook there than to have her wandering around out here. It's decided. Reaching down and nudging her gently with one of his massive claws in a gesture to follow him, he started walking in the direction he observed many herds take whilst on their way to the Valley.

Brook immediately hurried after him, certainly not wanting to be alone again. That's just pushing her luck and inviting certain death! In fact, just to be safe, she made extra sure to stick close to her savior, whilst trying not to be stepped on in the process, but luckily, the creature was careful of where he placed his footing.

"What's your name, kid?" he asked her after a moment of silence. The child wasn't expecting the question, but quickly remembered her manners and forced her voice to work again, finding it easier this time.

"Brook." She tilted her head, knowing an opportunity when she saw one. Just who and what was this mystery creature? "Who are you?"

The Longclaw certainly wasn't as eager to share as she was and there was deep silence for a while before he finally replied.

"Leaf Eaters call me Zin."

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><p>Long Prologue! Yayz! Anywho, your probably all wondering about that third raptor, right? Well, she was part of the RP and proved to be quite useful to the plot so here she is. Who is she? What's her name? What the hell is she doing with the Redclaw gang? That's a different story entirely, one I look forward to writing about when I get the chance. I may be evil in saying this, but I don't wanna give away too many spoilers.<p>

Okay! So we have our two main characters on their way to the Great Valley. I tried to hide as much info about Zin as possible until near the end, to help enhance the mystery of his character. And yes, he's bilingual! ^^ His species has the reputation of being the oddball of the dinosaur world, and I tried to portray that as well. As always, I hope you guys enjoyed this story and I also hope that you review!


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